Talkback: How to make a bee hotel

Last year I made a hedgehog house, dont knpow yet whether I had one take up residence as I havent looked yetsummerplace

24 Nov 2011 15:28

We saw bees using a small hole under a waterfall construction in the garden, last year and could hear noise of the activity under there,(bees buzzing ) but as a bee tried to enter this spring it was prevented by a large spider, Does this mean that this location will not be used by the bees again or will they try to gain access from another hole, I hope so because we would love to have them back. I found your blog very interesting and I will use some of your tips to try and get them to return.peter pumpkin

I've built two beehotels. First too loosely stuffes, later I learned to pack the stens very dense. Nevertheless, both have been damaged by birds. The stems are lying around. We do see bee activity, but not a lot.
mikeyboi9

24 Nov 2011 15:29

These are great! I already own one that I bought online from a seller in Edinburgh on a craft site, and had great success with it. I don't think I'm allowed to say what site though...
But anyway, now I can make one of my own!
Thanks for the instructions.PeteJ

24 Nov 2011 15:29

What is the best way to get bumble bees to nest in my compost heap.
bees'nbumbles

24 Nov 2011 15:29

You can also buy a box of live bumblebees for the home garden now called a Beepol box.
weeddr

18 May 2012 19:10

To suggest using Japanese knotweed for bee hotels is very risky and ill advised. Cutting knotweed canes in the summer while they're still growing is likely to lead to new infestations, if the canes are not handled carefully and are not allowed to become completely dry. Knotweed can be spread from a piece the size of a little finger nail. So PLEASE DON'T try this at home. Furthermore, I would say knotweed canes, when dead in the winter, are far too brittle to be useful. Far better to find a patch of invasive bamboo that someone has planted as a screen, and harvest that. Please Gardeners' World, think, before offering such irresponsible advice.
Solitarybee

25 Aug 2012 12:32

Don't forget to parasite manage the tunnels at the end of the season otherwise you'll create a bee cemetery within two seasons.

You'll get more info from other mason bee keepers who conserve and encourage these bees with the 'campaign for solitary bees' group.
Bob Eliott

Hi! We love Bee's what's not to love, with out them the human species could be doomed, or even have to work very hard pollinating fruit and other plants by hand, so look after your Bee population for a brighter world, and think of all that Honey.

We had blue tits setting up in our nest box last year then they got shooed of by great tits then bees shooed them away. The bees were no trouble; they investigated when the compost bin lid hit against the shed which shook the bird box but by September they'd all left. When we cleaned out the bird box this year there was a bees nest siting above the nest that the blue tits originally built. Looks like the same might happen this year - the blue tits were there but now we have great tits popping in instead!

how can you be sure if all the bees have vacated tubes in bee hotel,i dont want to drill the holes to clean them if they are still in there,there is very small holes in them,
Sophia2

06 Sep 2015 22:50

I don't think it is a very good idea to suggest the use of Japanese Knotweed stems In bee hotels. This is an incredibly invasive and destructive plant. It can infest and take over an area from just a tiny piece of the rhizome. It has a massive adverse impact on other plants and wildlife diversity. Encouraging the use of this plant is not sensible. BBC, please be more responsible with your advice!

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